Quebec elects minority Parti Quebecois government

The CBC(Canadian Broadcasting System) has just predicted that the province of Quebec will have a PQ(Parti Quebois) minority government with the first female premier of the province, Pauline Marois.

A number of ridings are still to close to call but as of this poisting the results were as follows. The Parti Quebecois was leading in 56 ridings, the Quebec Liberals 47, and CAQ 20, and Quebec Solidaire 2. The Parti Quebecois is a separatist party.

Polls show that only 28% of Quebec residents support Quebec independence at present. This means that there is unlikely to be a referendum on the question in the near future as some separatist hardliners might wish.

However Marois is likely to ask for more powers from the federal government in certain areas. The Conservative government of Stephen Harper is very unpopular in Quebec. If Marois is unsuccessful in negotiating with Harper she may use this as an argument in favor of separation.

The Liberals did better than the last polls indicated and the CAQ did not do as well. Many voters were undecided until the very last and must have opted to vote Liberal to keep try to keep the PQ from forming a government even though the Liberal government is not at all popular. As I post this the Liberal leader Jean Charest was losingin his own riding.However the race was too close to call.

The PQ hoped to get a majority so that it could pass its program but now it will have to shelve anything that is controversial. The CAQ is a relatively right wing party and not committed to separatism. The whole idea of holding a referendum in the near future will no doubt be shelved.

The CAQ did not get as many seats as it had hoped. In fact with voters disliking both Liberals and PQ and the corruption in Quebec politics they even dreamed of forming their own minority government. However for a party that is less than a year old they did quite well.

Quebec Solidaire is a left leaning separatiste party. It managed to double its seats from one to two, so they were happy enough with their performance. No doubt many anglophones will be upset with the PQ winning. However, with a minority the PQ will not be able to do much to disturb the status quo in Quebec and any separatist moves will be on the back burner for now.

CAQ second to PQ in Quebec election polls. Liberals in third!

As voting day nears in the Quebec provincial election, the Liberal Party led by Quebec Premier Jean Charest is running in third place in an August 24th poll. The separatist Parti Quebecois remains in first place.

Voters in Quebec go the polls September 4 to elect a new provincial government. An August 24th poll by Leger Marketing showed the Parti Quebecois (PQ) leading with 33 per cent of the vote. The newer party the CAQ(Coalition Avenir Quebec) has overtaken the ruling Liberal Party with 28% and the Liberals were third with 27%. The trend seems to be favoring the CAQ as both Liberal and the PQ seem to be losing votes to the CAQ.

The CAQ party leader Francois Legault is playing down the whole idea of a referendum on Quebec independence. Legault claims he is a nationalist rather than a sovereigntist or federalist meaning that he neither supports independence for Quebec nor does he support a federalist government. The first is the position of the PQ and the second of the ruling Liberal Party. Only 45% of Quebecers in an Angus Reid poll believe Legault would oppose sovereignty. Legault was a minister in a former PQ government before leaving the party.

Charest continually warns voters that to vote for CAQ is the same as voting PQ. Legault has said he would vote "no" if there is a third referendum. Legault promises to keep the issue on the backburner for a decade if his party wins the election. Legault promises that if elected:

“I will defend neither sovereignty nor Canadian unity.”

While a somewhat negative promise no doubt it is meant to distinguish his position from that of the Liberals and the PQ. Legault's tactics seem to be working. The CAQ has attracted up to a quarter of those who voted Liberal last election and even 15% from the PQ. The PQ is holding on to more of their voters than the Liberals.

Legault did well in a debate with the other two leaders according to many. He also echoed Obama's successful slogan "Yes, we can." by insisting "We can do it." Legault is critical of the power of Quebec unions. He is likely to capture right wing votes even among anglophones.